Music Sounds Better With Two

**Moderate spoiler alert from 1:08:00 onwards for the new Steps Musical - Here and Now**This week we revisit Steps: On The Road Again (2012) and discover what we always knew to be true...they're in fact NOT Better Best Forgotten. We take an (unclean) tour bus back on the road where diversions and roadsigns we encounter are: Are Bucks Fizz or Steps the British ABBA? Will Lisa ever recover from leaving her kids in Dubai? Will Faye ever actually eat that kebab the cancelled photographer forces her to eat at the back of the bus? Will H and Claire ever be forgiven for their betrayal by Lee? Is this documentary actually Spinal Tap? Will a 70, 000 capacity stage fit inside a 6,000 capacity venue? Reduce your speed. Stay en route, last stop Manchester Arena.And in a B.O.G.O.F offer you simply cannot refuse we also cover the new Steps juke box Musical: Here and Now, that we both recently saw at the theatre. Without further ado, "Cleanup on aisles 5,6,7,8" in this absolute 'trashedy' of an episode.  J & N xMajor thanks go to Vicky Leigh for uploading the following parts of the doc in question on Youtube:-Part 1: https://youtu.be/q1J67fPFGV4?si=-4E9wsF4BoFMMTGsPart 2: https://youtu.be/0iWykp3qF84?si=CQoA-ML1XZvD6cS8Part 3: https://youtu.be/W9sioKSfbhE?si=Wey9zZWQC8V_Zz69Part 4: https://youtu.be/UIXYXRx9__g?si=fMsls5nvsNDd16PsPart 5: https://youtu.be/snxbGibtsnM?si=rg_NpvAWMX_F6HZ3P.S Pls listen with headphones if possible - J continues to experience mic difficulties **le sigh**

The moment you've all (probably not) been waiting for blink fans. TJulie has fixed her mic and the 'blinkisode' is back! In this instalment we cover the years 2007-2015 when Tom, Mark and Travis reunited after their break up...the first time. Join us as we stay 'Up All Night' to discuss: Travis Barker's flight simulator plane crash (that Tom potentially caused through "predictive programming"), Tom in his Alien investigator/Instagram live inventor mode and Mark somehow managing to interview the Gallagher brothers with dignity and charm (no easy feat). We are in the largely forgotten Neighbourhoods (2011) and Dogs Eating Dogs (2012) era. We witness men in their forties attempting to navigate the youthful waters of pop punk. Will their ageing knees be able to survive ollieing on skateboards? Will Tom and Mark's tempestuous friendship be repaired?  Will we ever recover from the cringe of their Grammy reunion announcement? Will our obsession/love for blink ever put a stop to the never ending saga of blinkisodes? Slip a wee insole into your vans and come along for the wild ride! J & N xAngels and Airwaves: Start the Machine - https://youtu.be/WhDlYno5Fr4?si=I7DmiL_ZYkPRywR72009 Grammy Awards (Blink present Coldplay the award for best Rock band - https://youtu.be/GgFWwQobjK4?si=2Tmp9SoAhs_BDIN7Mark gives us a BTS of the making of Neighbourhoods - https://youtu.be/QdsUMFM3waE?si=Njkks0NI2QAYOVZUBlink-182: Wishing Well - https://youtu.be/q4Vw77LMFPM?si=VeShSATLWzjxCdJ7Mark interviews Noel and Liam - https://youtu.be/vQkcVNn-lIE?si=8jjy2s_xA5em6lq4

Turns out we're all still 'mad fer it'. With their Oasis Live '25 tour, well under way , Oasis fever is currently sweeping the nation once more. What better way to celebrate their return than by revising their '97 documentary: Right Here, Right Now. Well...if you can call it a documentary, really. In a MÖTH alcohol fuelled haze, we discuss: the world's smallest plane, the world's longest wave from Noel, the world's biggest key from Bonehead, Liam and Noel's penchant for train conductor/Baker boy caps and crazy tabloid puns complete with a case of mistaken identity (apologies to Ricky Hatton/Wilson).For best results, enjoy listening to our nonsensical Oasis nostalgia trip with a cheeky wee bottle of hooch in a pool hall. Let there be love. J & N xNote from Julie: big sorry that my mic is still refusing to pick me up properly (who’s Mic?) - we’re working on it!Oasis: Right Here, Right Now is available now to stream on BBC iPlayer.

Didn't they say that we would make a mistake?" Well, 'No Matter What' we tried, this episode was extremely difficult to put out. This was our 2nd attempt at recording and there are still some audio issues. All we can ask is that "words don't come easily, but forgive us." If you haven't guessed from the puns by now; this week we bring you our thoughts on the Boyzone documentary, available on Now TV; No Matter What. As is standard for us we flip chaotically between the profound (Stephen Gateley's legacy) and the ridiculous (Are Boyzone and Louis Walsh an allegory for Phantom of the Opera?) We discuss the treatment of our vulnerable, young pop stars at the hands of the media and the brutal pop machine. We descend into the minutia of underground car parking for the Paparazzi and if Louis Walsh is actually the Wizard of Oz. Without further ado please listen and enjoy this week's episodes and as always contact us on the socials . J & N

Here's the second episode centred around Lou Pearlman that probably no one asked for. This time we cover Netflix's: Dirty Pop: The Boyband Scam. Prepare for an extremely (possibly unintentionally hilarious) episode. Special guest feature from Julie's other half: John Aldred who also contributed to our nonsense. On the journey into madness we encounter: AI Lou Pearlman, pensioners losing their nest eggs and making the BSB album Millenium (thankyou very much Ponzi scheme victims), "Catchphrase" style close ups of pixelated pop stars beards and Gold discs presented in German Dimaggio's . As always we try to make light of some very dark subject matter. Come in and enjoy this bumpy blimp ride as always with "no strings attached." Until next time friends we don't care who you are. Where you're from. As long as you love us. J & N.

Merry Christmas, you lovely lot. It's been a long time coming, and what better way for MSBWT to return than by celebrating 'The greatest night in pop' together. This season, J and I are going to be discussing (barely) some Netflix documentaries based around (you guessed it) music. Which, by the way, still sounds better with two. 'The Greatest Night In Pop' explores how the single 'We Are The World' USA for Africa was recorded. A chaotic ensemble of America's 80's icons assemble for one night only, and it is just as mental and hilarity filled as you could imagine. Featuring: Learning Swahili for no reason, Shiny jacketed Michael Jackson, Lionel Ritchie presenter and winner of every award at the AMA's, Bruce Springsteen desperate to get that first flight back to New Jersey as he quietly dies of the flu, Cyndi Lauper delivering obnoxious vocals and obnoxious points of view, Diana Ross never wanting the night to end, Bob Geldof telling everyone off and our favourite most memeable moment of the lot: Bob Dylan having absolutely no idea what's going on for the whole recording and barely being present. So, come back into our little, crazy world and rejoice because in '25 we, MSBWT, are planning to make the world a better place. Just J and me. (And sometimes John) More on that in episode 2, coming soon.

Hey guys! Well here we are with the 4th instalment of the blink story. The first of 2 instalments on life post blink. We're taking you back to 2006 where a freshly divorced blink-182 both find themselves in new relationships, +44 and Angels and Airwaves respectively. We dive into the debut, and to this day only, album by +44 "When Your Heart Stops Beating." We explore the dark, lyrical content of No, it isn't including an annotated spoken word performance from J and I as we slowly lose "our brains". We then compare and contrast it to the AvA debut "We Don't Need To Whisper". So come along and enjoy some blink chat as well as life updates, drinking alcohol and sex dream analysis apparently. This isn't just goodbye. This is we can't stand you. (Jokes jokes. We love you all). J & N xoxo Keep in touch here: musicsoundsbetterwithtwo@gmail.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.commusicsoundsbetterwithtwo/ Instagram: https://instagram.com/musicsoundsbetterwithtwo?utm_medium=copy_link Twitter: @msbwtpod

Hey guys! We've got some X-tra Factor for you. We're back with Cristina for some extra content. Our reality pop music chat got so deep and off piste that we created an X-Factor chaser. In this episode we voice our opinions freely on how these music shows affected all of our lives and changed the music industry forever. It gave the public a power they had never had before that we unfortunately, more often than not, abused. We catapulted these ordinary people into the spotlight without the appropriate support and we abandoned them when we were all done. This has then caused a hangover into the new Gen Z generation on the platforms of tik tok influencers. We discuss cancel culture, what we thought of as "normal", mental health, the death of the paparazzi and the birth of us becoming the press. These are all our opinions and we appreciate all your input too so please join the conversation with respectful love or hate please. J & N xoxo Keep in touch here: musicsoundsbetterwithtwo@gmail.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.commusicsoundsbetterwithtwo/ Instagram: https://instagram.com/musicsoundsbetterwithtwo?utm_medium=copy_link Twitter: @msbwtpod

Hey guys! We're back for Season 4 and this week we are The Cheeky Girls (cheeky cheeky). We're here with a wonderful guest and friend of the pod, Cristina D'Annunzio, our own personal Honey-G, to discuss our wealth of fond memories and knowledge surrounding music reality TV shows. She can also rap and do a cracking impression of the announcer dude off X-Factor. Listen to the ep to hear those. We take a trip down memory lane through the fun and (in hindsight) mucky world of reality music shows from Pop Idol, Pop Stars: the Rivals, X-Factor and The Voice. We laugh a lot and discuss the implications of the auditions phase, "jigsaw bands", sibling/incest duos and acts you probably long forgot about. Grab a drink and join us - you're all through to Judges Houses. J & N xoxo Keep in touch here: musicsoundsbetterwithtwo@gmail.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.commusicsoundsbetterwithtwo/ Instagram: https://instagram.com/musicsoundsbetterwithtwo?utm_medium=copy_link Twitter: @msbwtpod

Hey friends! We've finally crawled to the end of season 3 and we are beyond grateful to anyone still journeying with us. This week we travel to Edinburgh to watch Midlake perform at the Liquid Rooms. Join us as we navigate the hustle and bustle of our nation's capital complete with automatic lawnmowers, alarms, sirens and birdsong. We discuss not only the wonderful performance of Midlake but also what it means to experience live music and how it can't be separated from the city you experience it in. Glasgow and Edinburgh are only an hour away from each other but the gig etiquette could not be more different. So are you team Glasgow gig or team Edinburgh gig? Join the discussion y'all and see you all soon in season 4. J & N xoxo Keep in touch here: musicsoundsbetterwithtwo@gmail.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.commusicsoundsbetterwithtwo/ Instagram: https://instagram.com/musicsoundsbetterwithtwo?utm_medium=copy_link Twitter: @msbwtpod

This week Take That relight our fires (and possibly scar us for life) as we watch their 2006 documentary For The Record. This one is a special request for long time supporter, friend and fan Sareem Griage. We hope we did it justice. Join us and the mad bunch of young Manc lads as they travel the icky, sticky cake and jelly filled food waste hellscape of the pop machine in their early 90s heyday, through to the departure of Robbie and the eventual breakdown of the band when all we wanted was their lipstick marks still on their coffee cups. We discuss important issues amongst the madness including addiction, the muckiness of the music industry, boys struggling to talk about mental health and male...er...bonding activities? Never forget. Well we can't forget anything that happened in the 90's and 00's and we can't let you lot do that either so join us for one (could it be) magic trip back to Take That's 90's fever dream. J & N xoxo Keep in touch here: musicsoundsbetterwithtwo@gmail.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.commusicsoundsbetterwithtwo/ Instagram: https://instagram.com/musicsoundsbetterwithtwo?utm_medium=copy_link Twitter: @msbwtpod

Hey guys! This week we bring you a vintage magazine reading a.k.a our new obsession. This season we're bringing you #133 of MOJO from April 2003. In the edition we read a full britpop reflection article. There are soundbites from britpop legends looking back on the heady heyday of britpop. Along the way we meet cancelled misogynistic car and Mülller rice ads. We then try to go full method and bring you the authentic accents of Liam Gallagher, Graham Coxon, Jarvis Cocker, Phil Savidge (Savage?) Et Al to varying degrees of success (sorry). So without further ado come back to 2003 and bathe with us in the nostalgia, the regret, the class A drugs, the cigarettes, the alcohol and the musicians that got all tangled up in the britpop machine and made it out the other side to embrace a new century. J & N xoxo

Hey guys! Hope you're taking it easy in the New Year. Since we can't rave at the minute we're bringing the rave to you! This week we're taking a deeper dive into rave culture in the west coast of Scotland and how it is intrinsically tied up with working class, "ned" youth culture and the futile need to escape. We look at the culture through the lens of Graeme Armstrong's (writer of The Young Team) BBC documentary Scotland The Rave. We hope we provide a meaningful, respectful commentary on the rave community and the associated sub cultures. Graeme Armstrong you're an amazing guy who has written a truly beautiful account of being a YT member and all the anxiety and hopelessness that comes with that but the presenting style in this doc is off the wall. There's a segment where he's just skating around the Time Capsule.. or was he? J was convinced there was stunt legs involved. For anyone that was a YT, PC DJ, Raver, Scheme wean looking to escape this one is for you. J & N xoxo Links: Scotland the Rave https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m000z4dn The Young Team The Young Team https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/152901736X/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_fabc_ZHBJEMTGVP39ZA34M11B Keep in touch here: musicsoundsbetterwithtwo@gmail.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.commusicsoundsbetterwithtwo/ Instagram: https://instagram.com/musicsoundsbetterwithtwo?utm_medium=copy_link Twitter: @msbwtpod

Ho Ho Ho guys! The festive season is upon us and whether you celebrate or not, whether you love it or hate it, whether it's a rough time for you or if it brings you joy, come have a babycham with us and be merry as we discuss Christmas music! J regales us with anecdotes and Christmas songs from her experience with weird retail Christmas playlists. Pet rats for Christmas anyone? Then I try to (probably unsuccessfully) cancel "sexy" Christmas songs. Does Sexualising Santa make you wanna chuck up your mince pies too? After I've calmed down I bring you some blinkmas bangers. And then J and I round things off by discussing our favourite Christmas songs of all time. Ranging from a deep dive into the beautiful, deep meaningful imagery of The Power of Love by Frankie Goes to Hollywood by J to me trying not to fall deeper in love with soft boi Liam Gallager as he spreads Christmas hope in tough times. Merry Christmas to all of our beautiful listeners. Reach out if you need a friend. J & N xoxo musicsoundsbetterwithtwo@gmail.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.commusicsoundsbetterwithtwo/ Instagram: https://instagram.com/musicsoundsbetterwithtwo?utm_medium=copy_link Twitter: @msbwtpod

Hey friends, we are celebrating J's birthday this week and we've chosen to share it with you - a relaxed episode where we look at weird lyrics in songs pt 2 and strange vocal inflections that probably only we notice. Shout out to our content creator of the week, Finn McKenty for inspiring our content in a way he probably never expected. Come get bloated with us as we listen to Meatloaf and riff with Shania on her two different versions of "that don't impress me much", where she becomes increasingly less impressed. Crazy cowbell shenanigans with Britney, weird vocal runs with Christina Aguilera, and missing bridges with Backstreet Boys. Come on in and learn how to be a considerate lover with us…apparently. J & N xoxo Keep in touch with us here: Facebook: https://www.facebook.commusicsoundsbetterwithtwo/ Instagram: https://instagram.com/musicsoundsbetterwithtwo?utm_medium=copy_link Twitter: @msbwtpod and at our email address: musicsoundsbetterwithtwo@gmail.com

Hey arrr kids! This week we're taking you back to the mid 90's when the UK was hooked on a little thing called britpop. So grab your bucket hats (they're back in fashion you know) and come journey with us as we comment on various incoherent britpop documentaries. We have conversations surrounding the iconic artists of the era: blur, Oasis, Suede, Supergrass, Pulp and many more. Actually perhaps some less iconic artists too...Menswe@r anyone? We look at how the genre was heavily influenced by the issues surrounding the British class system and politics and see how our opinions on the blur v Oasis battle have changed with the passage of time. Anyway, here's Wonderwall... J & N xoxo Keep in touch with us here: Facebook: https://www.facebook.commusicsoundsbetterwithtwo/ Instagram: https://instagram.com/musicsoundsbetterwithtwo?utm_medium=copy_link Twitter: @msbwtpod and at our email address: musicsoundsbetterwithtwo@gmail.com Links: Britpop Now (1995): https://youtu.be/skb6lVS35Jk The Britpop Story: https://youtu.be/K7ZKk2phozs Live Forever: The Rise and Fall of Britpop: https://vimeo.com/60764750

Hello there, the angels from our nightmares. This week we are continuing the blink journey into their most creative and swoopy haired era, the Untitled album (2003). We watch the MTV Launch documentary following the creative process of the album and do some deep dives on the artistic nuances on this masterpiece. Did 'I Miss You' cause an entire generation to dye their hair black, swoop their fringe and pierce their lip? Most likely. Come on in and relive the trauma with us as we head towards the first dissolution of the band in 2005. J & N xoxo Keep in touch with us here: Facebook: https://www.facebook.commusicsoundsbetterwithtwo/ Instagram: https://instagram.com/musicsoundsbetterwithtwo?utm_medium=copy_link Twitter: @msbwtpod and at our email address: musicsoundsbetterwithtwo@gmail.com Links: Tom interviewing Mel Gibson: https://youtu.be/NJJsSyeSKRA MTV documentary: https://youtu.be/z2JKHMhvUew Isolated vocals on ‘Feeling This’: https://youtu.be/NCAa_X6FlHg Blink’s cover of The Cure’s ‘Letter to Elise’: https://youtu.be/w6g0wqOKX3o All track clips from the album ‘Untitled’ by Blink-182 which is available wherever you stream/download music - duh. Blink Italia’s Instagram: https://instagram.com/blink182italia?utm_medium=copy_link 155 podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/6qMwn5BUMorpK57gvtIrv4?si=glOiwSihSQegS0yZPLtZxw Mark Hoppus’ Twitch: https://twitch.tv/markhoppus

Hey friends! This week we took a Podcast trip to York and experienced opera for the first time. J got emotional. I remained emotionless. Standard. So pop on your opera glasses (are they still a thing? We never had any. That's sad) and join us for an evening of classical music and operatic vocals which comprise of one line being sang 15 different ways in the space of 20 minutes apparently. J provides beautiful in depth analysis and is proper committed to becoming a full time opera fan now so hit her up if you want to join her operatic society. J & N xoxo. Keep in touch with us here: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/musicsoundsbetterwithtwo/ Instagram: https://instagram.com/musicsoundsbetterwithtwo?utm_medium=copy_link Twitter: @msbwtpod and at our email address: musicsoundsbetterwithtwo@gmail.com All music in the episode brought to you by English Touring Opera’s 2021 production of Amadigi, conducted by Johnathan Peter Kenny, directed by James Conway and designed by Neil Irish with Rory Beaton and Harry Pizzey. Clip 1 features Jenny Stafford as Melissa. Clip 2 features Rebecca Afonwy-Jones as Dardano Fact check: Kiri Te Kanawa did indeed sing The World in Union FOR RUGBY…not football…and definitely not with Queen… We also mentioned the Vitamin String Quartet (well I (J) called them the Vitamin C Orchestra 🤦🏼‍♀️) - check out their stuff here https://youtube.com/c/vitaminstringquartet

Hey friends! We're back for season 3. This week we interview someone from inside the local band scene in Glasgow (and Dumbarton) for the past 20 years, a real 'Rock 'n' Roll Star', who also happens to be my brother. He shares stories about the music that inspired him to pick up a guitar (now bass), stories from life on the road in his bands The Haze and Holy Pistol Club, and what it was like being part of a local band scene in the 00's. Listen to find out what happened to Noel Gallagher's towel, antics on a Mötley Crüe tour bus and a failed attempt at returning a tambourine and many more ridiculous stories from inside the music industry. Holy Pistol Club are hopefully going to be returning to a gig venue near you soon. And until then they're available on Spotify just like us. Stay tuned. Big thanks to J who somehow managed to edit my bro and I's ramblings. J & N xoxo Keep in touch with us here: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/musicsoundsbetterwithtwo/ Instagram: https://instagram.com/musicsoundsbetterwithtwo?utm_medium=copy_link NOW ALSO ON TWITTER - Come for us @msbwtpod and at our email address: musicsoundsbetterwithtwo@gmail.com All music in the episode brought to you by The Haze and Holy Pistol club - find them on Spotify and iTunes. 🚨 Fact check 🚨- call yourself a Supergrass fan, Julie? The lead singer is of course GAZ Coombes - not Baz 🤦🏼‍♀️

Hey friends welcome to our narcissistic collection of best bits from season 2. We take you right back to conspiracies: is Paul dead? Is Tom DeLonge IN the stars? Unsolved. Then we're bringing you good critesen bois, the blinkisode continues and we're bringing you into an 80's/90's nostalgia aural hellscape in TV themes. See y'all back here for part 2. J & N